A Cousin's Betrayal
by Kimduke-79
Summary: An enemy of Luke's parents past wants revenge on his family by hurting another family member. Will the Duke family survive and help clear Luke of committing the crime.
1. An Enemy's Revenge

It was a sunny day in Hazzard High School where Luke had caught up with several of his friends in an area hidden out of view of the front of the school. Luke came to meet his friends who were smoking. One of his friends named Roy had asked Luke," Do you want a cigarette." Luke replied, "Sure." Luke had his own pack of cigarettes but he had hid them in the barn so his uncle would never find them. After a few minutes, Luke had finished his cigarette, he said to his friends," I have to go meet Bo when he is done with his last class. They all answered, "Okay."  
  
When Luke saw his cousin coming out of the building, he yells, "Bo, over here." Bo turned his head towards the direction that Luke was calling him from. Bo says," You ready, let's get on the bus before it leaves without us Luke. As the bus lets the boys off at their stop which was a short distance from the farm they ran up to the farm house where Uncle Jesse was reading the paper, Uncle Jesse said, "Boys, you have chores to do" The boys answered. "Yes sir." When the boys were finishing cleaning the stables, Luke told Bo that he would be in a little while. Bo answered, "Okay." Unknown to both boys that someone from Luke's past is getting revenge for when Jesse had put him behind bars ten years ago. He is watching Luke take out of his hiding place his cigarettes and lighter which gives the man an idea to destroy Luke's family.  
  
When Luke saw that Bo was inside the farm house, he goes to the box in the barn where he has hidden his cigarettes and lighter and walks outside of the barn that faces away the farm house to smoke. When Bo was came into the farm house, his uncle asks Bo where his cousin was. He replied," He is in the barn." His uncle told him that he needed Luke to go into town and get some supplies. When Bo went out to call his cousin, it spoke Luke and he dropped his cigarette and step on it to smother the cigarette so it would not burn anything, but Luke did not realize that the ash from the cigarette wasn't completely out. The wind began to blow into the straw inside the barn. Luke walked to the entrance of the barn, Bo told him that Jesse needs him to go to town to get supplies. Luke said, I am on my way, bye." As Luke was leaving, Cooter drove up in his truck to drop off some stuff for Jesse. He said, " Hey Luke, where's your Uncle Jesse at. "Luke answered," He is in the farm house and I am on my way to get the supplies he needs to repair the fences in the back 40." Cooter answered, "Okay, thanks Luke." and Luke drove away from the farm.  
  
As Bo saw Luke leave, he decided to go up into the hayloft and take a short nap because he always loved to sleep in the hayloft. Someone was watching the barn and saw that Bo had climbed up the hayloft. This person also saw Luke smoking behind the barn earlier and knew where Luke had hidden his cigarettes. He thought to himself, "Perfect, I can burn the barn down and have Luke be blamed for it. I need to sneak in there and place the gasoline container and light the straw with Luke's lighter." Once he lit the straw and he ran away from the barn before the gasoline container blew. A moment later, a gasoline container exploded in the far corner of the barn. The sound of the explosion suddenly woke Bo up and he saw the fire, he knew he had to get out of the barm quickly. He ran towards the ladder, but the fire that was feeding off the gasoline had destroyed the ladder and he realized that his only way to safety was destroyed by the fire. 


	2. A Life and Death Struggle

When Cooter and Jesse are looking out the window when they heard an explosion, both of them saw that the barn was on fire. They ran outside and suddenly Cooter heard Bo yelling from the hayloft,"COOTER, UNCLE JESSE, HELP ME!" "PLEASE, HELP ME!" All of a sudden, they hear several beams that held the hayloft came crashing to the ground, Cooter tells Jesse to run into the house and call the fire department and the ambulance." " I will get Bo out of the barn." He runs into the barn to rescue Bo. By the time that Jesse comes back outside from calling the fire department, Cooter had Bo lying on the ground. Jesse saw that Cooter had grabbed the bucket near the farm house, filled it with water, then stuck Bo's burned hands into it to save his hands from getting any worse. He found a rag and soaked it into the water and applied it to Bo's right cheek and neck that was burned. When the ambulance arrived and loaded Bo into the back, Jesse asked if he could ride along. The one of the paramedics saw the condition of the boy, he said," Sure, you can ride along and comfort him." Cooter told Jesse that he will be driving back to town and get a message to Luke about what had happen.  
  
After the ambulance left, Cooter started his drive back to town and saw the pickup truck coming towards him and pulled his tow truck to a stop and Luke stopped a minute later. Luke asked, " What's up Cooter." Cooter replied, Luke, something happen at the farm, the barn burned down and the ambulance took your cousin to tri-county hospital. He has burns on his hands and the right side of his cheek and neck. I am on my way to the hospital." Luke answered, "I am right behind you, Cooter." 


	3. An End to a Friendship?

After the ambulance left, Cooter started his drive back to town, he saw the pickup truck coming towards him. He pulled his tow truck to a stop and Luke stopped a minute later. Luke asked, " What's up Cooter." Cooter replied, Luke, something happen at the farm, the barn burned down and the ambulance took your cousin to tri-county hospital. He has burns on his hands and the right side of his cheek and neck. I am on my way to the hospital." Luke answered, "I am right behind you, Cooter."  
  
After arriving at the hospital, Luke and Cooter found Jesse in the waiting room. They asked how Bo was and he said that they have not come out yet to tell them the news. So they all took a seat and waited for someone to tell them what was happening. Two hours later, a doctor entered the waiting room, he asked, "Are you the family of Bo Duke, Sir." Jesse answered, "Yes, I am Bo's uncle, what is the news on my nephew." The doctor replied, " Your nephew has second degree burns to his right side of his cheek and neck as well as his hands. I was told that a friend had saved his hands by putting them in a bucket of water and it saved his hands in what could have been a crippling burn." Jesse asked if they could see Bo and the doctor said they could but one at a time and they would need to wear the paper robs and hand gloves to protect Bo from any infections.  
  
Luke said, " Uncle Jesse, you should be the first one to see him." "I will wait till you come back out and besides I am going to get some air." After Luke sees his uncle leave towards Bo's room, he goes outside to smoke and he remembered he had left another pack of cigarettes in the pocket of his jacket he was wearing that he grabbed from his locker earlier that day and realized they were still in his pocket. He found a quiet place that was hidden by part of the building and began to smoke for an hour. When Jesse came back to the waiting room an hour later, Cooter told him that Luke hasn't come back yet from getting some fresh air. This made Jesse mad because Bo was asking for Luke and he wanted to see his cousin. How would he tell Bo that his cousin left because he didn't care enough to be there to support him. When Jesse came back he told Bo that Luke went out to get some fresh air and they couldn't find him. This made Bo sad and he began to cry and said that Luke probably does not want to see him because he looks like some freak. Uncle Jesse said, " Bo, you know that ain't true and Cooter and I will go look for him. As Jesse left Bo there crying, he went back out and still saw that Luke wasn't there still and he asked Cooter to help him look for Luke. 


	4. A Lost Friendship Between Cousins

Luke began to walk down the hall to the door that leads into the room where Bo was staying, he began to think of what to say to his cousin and the thought that Bo thought he had left had upset very much. He enters the room and sees that Bo is asleep; he notices that Bo's hands were rapped in gauze and were very red. A nurse was there to put the rest of the gauze around his other hand told Luke that his cousin is doing better and he is tired because they had finished his skin grafts on his hands and face. It had tired him out. Luke said, "Well I am here to visit him and is the visiting hours over." The nurse replied, "No, you have one hour left, you should spend some time with him." Luke answered," Thanks," As the nurse left, Luke grab the chair that was next to Bo's bed and sat down he put on the paper rob and gloves so he wouldn't cause Bo to get an infection.  
  
Luke then carefully holds Bo's hand and started to brush his blond hair away from his eyes with his other hand. Suddenly Bo started to feel someone touching his hair and slowly opened his eyes and saw his cousin sitting next to his bed. Bo asked," Why are you here, I thought you left without seeing me." Luke replied," I had been here, but I was outside getting some air and I didn't realize what time it was. I do care and love you very much." Then Luke carefully pull his cousin up to give him a hug and Bo began to cry on Luke's shoulder, crying all his fears that occurred during the fire in the barn. Bo said, " I thought I was going to die. The flames had destroyed the ladder and I had no way of getting out. The hayloft fell to the ground and now my hands, face and neck are burned. Now I look like some freak." Luke replied," Bo, you don't look like a freak, I will help you get well." All of a sudden, Luke heard a slow moment of breathing and Luke realized Bo had cried himself to sleep. He gently put Bo back down to his bed and covered him with his blanket. He slowly left the room thinking that he could have caused the barn to burn and he could never tell his uncle or cousins about it. He felt that if he told his family that he would lose the only family he ever had.  
  
When Jesse arrived back at the farm, Daisy had come home from visiting a friend in capital city the last couple of days. When she saw the barn she asked, "What happen to the barn, Uncle Jesse?" Jesse replied, "There was a fire that burned down the barn and your cousin Bo was in the hayloft and it burned his hands and the right side of his face and neck." Daisy cried, "Oh no, Uncle Jesse how is Bo doing." He answered Daisy's question," He is better, but he has several surgeries and skin grafts to do." Then Luke arrived home as they entered the farmhouse, talked and later went to bed.  
  
Over the next several days, Luke and Daisy went to school and after school was over, they drove home to the farm to begin their chores. Jesse came out and told them to get their chores done if there was time they would go see Bo. Daisy said," I have my job and I can't miss work since it's going to be a busy night." Luke answered," I was planning to go see Bo Uncle Jesse if there are no other chores to be completed." Jesse replied, "Sure Luke you can go, I would like to, but I have other things to do before I could visit him." After Luke finished his chores, he took the pickup truck and drove to Tri- County Hospital. Once he arrived at the hospital, Luke couldn't face Bo and walked to the same hidden area to smoke. He stayed there till visiting hours were over and drove back to the farm. He felt that he could not face his cousin because he thought he had caused the fire. He would do this for the rest of the week knowing he was lying to his uncle about visiting his cousin. He thought he would not know the truth since his uncle was too busy with the farm to visit Bo and not realizing that his uncle will find out the truth soon. 


	5. Broken Trust and Friendship

When Luke arrived back the farm at about 10pm from his suppose trip to the hospital to visit Bo, he walked into the farmhouse and was surprised to see his uncle was still awake siting in a chair in the family room. Luke said, " I thought you would be asleep by now." His uncle replied," I know that you did not go to visit your cousin. Where have you been, BOY AND DON'T LIE TO ME?" Luke became pale by the sound of his uncle's voice and answered," I am not lying to you Uncle Jesse." Jesse started to get very angry at Luke and said, " I KNOW THAT YOU DID NOT SEE YOUR COUSIN BECAUSE I WENT THERE EARLIER TODAY TO VISIT YOUR COUSIN AND BO SAID YOU HAVE NOT GONE TO VISIT HIM SINCE THE DAY THE ACCIDENT OCCURRED. HOW CAN YOU BE SO STUPID AND CARELESS TO NOT TO VISIT FOR YOUR COUSIN? HE KEEPS ASKING ME WHERE ARE YOU AND WHEN I TOLD HIM I DON'T KNOW, HE WOULD END UP CRYING ON MY SHOULDER." HOW DOES HE FEEL THAT HIS COUSIN DOESN'T WANT TO SEE HIM? " Then Jesse went over to the chair and grabs the wide strap that was on the floor next to the chair in the family room. When Luke saw the strap, he knew that the only time his uncle had it was when either boy was going to get a whipping. Jesse said," BOY, GO OVER AND PULL ONE OF THOSE CHAIRS FROM THE KITCHEN TABLE AND BEND OVER IT." Luke knew what was going to happen next because he knew that he would get at least 10 to 15 lashes with the strap, but seeing how angry his uncle was he could only guess. Jesse grabbed Luke by his shoulder and with the strap in his other hand, he began to swing the strap and striking his bottom very hard. Luke began to cry and he began to lose track of the lashes after Jesse strike him for the twentieth time. When Jesse felt that thirty lashes with the strap was enough, he told Luke to go to his room. Uncle Jesse asks Luke to promise him that he would go visit his cousin tomorrow. Luke just shock his head and says," I will Uncle Jesse." He did not say anything else to his uncle, knowing it could cause him another whipping; he quietly went to his room.


	6. A Cousin's Lie

Several days later after the accident, Daisy had finished the laundry and was putting the boy's clothes away. After she put Bo's clothes away into his drawer, she opened the Luke's drawer only to discover the pack of cigarettes under his shirts. Daisy knew that if anyone were smoking on the property, someone would get a whipping. She knew that she had to show her uncle what she had found. When Daisy went to her uncle to show him the cigarettes, Jesse asked her where she had found them. She said, "I found them hidden in one of Luke's drawers when I was putting his clothes away. When Jesse realized that Luke had been smoking and could have caused the fire that almost killed his cousin. He told Daisy that he would have to deal with Luke regarding the cigarettes.

When Luke arrived from visiting his cousin, Jesse was sitting in the front room and said to Luke " BOY, GET IN THIS ROOM THIS MINUTE AND I WANT TO TALK TO YOU ABOUT SOMETHING. Luke was afraid of what was going to happen by the tone of his uncle's voice. Jesse said, "DAISY FOUND THESE IN YOUR DRESSER DRAWER WHEN SHE WAS PUTTING YOUR CLOTHES AWAY. NOW I WANT TO KNOW WHY YOU HAVE THIS IN THE HOUSE. I WANT TO KNOW WHERE YOU GOT THESE FROM THIS INSTANT." Luke answered," I got them from a friend the other day at school." Jesse answered loudly, "YOU GOT THEM FROM A FRIEND AND WERE YOU SMOKING." Luke answered, "Yes, Uncle Jesse." Jesse yelled, " HOW COULD YOU BE SO STUPID TO BE SMOKING ON THE FARM. YOU KNOW THAT IF WE HAVE A FIRE, WE WOULD NOT ONLY LOSE THE BARN, BUT ALSO THE FARMHOUSE. WHAT WERE YOU THINKING, LUKE." Luke was shocked by the anger from his uncle's shouting said, "I am sorry for bringing the cigarettes home." Jesse answered," LUKE, YOU SHOULD HAVE KNOWN BETTER THAN TO SMOKE, HOW STUPID AND CARELESS CAN YOU BE TO BE SMOKING IN OR NEAR THE BARN. YOU COULD HAVE KILLED YOUR COUSIN. WHEN COOTER AND I HEARD BO CALLING FOR HELP, I HAD NO WAY OF SAVING HIM AND WHEN COOTER PULLED HIM OUT OF THE FIRE HE WAS BADLY BURNED WHEN THE HAYLOFT COLLASPED BECAUSE YOU SMOKE THE CIGARETTE AND CARELESSLY DROPPED IT. HOW COULD YOU SMOKE IN THE BARN AND SO DAMM CARE LESS? WHERE HAS THE LITTLE BOY THAT I WOULD READ BEDTIME STORIES WITH HIS LITTLE COUSIN GO OR WHAT HAPPEN TO THE THINGS I TAUGHT YOU THAT A PERSON CAN BE SO CARELESS WHEN PLAYING WITH MATCHES. YOU COULD HAVE BURNED DOWN THE FARMHOUSE AS WELL AND WHERE WOULD WE LIVE NOW IF THAT HAD HAPPEN TO US OR WHAT COULD HAVE HAPPEN TO COUSIN. HE COULD HAVE DIED DUE TO YOUR CARELESSNESS. Luke answered, "Yes Uncle Jesse, I am sorry for hiding the cigarettes from you." Then Jesse replied," DO YOU KNOW THAT SMOKING IS A FIFTHLY HABIT THAT CAN CAUSE HEALTH PROBLEMS FOR YEARS. HOW COULD YOU GO FROM BEING A WELL-BEHAVED YOUNG MAN TO A YOUNG MAN THAT IS TURNING DOWN THE WRONG PATH? WHY DID YOU START THE FIRE, LUKE AND WHY WOULD YOU BURN DOWN THE BARN KNOWING YOUR COUSIN IS INSIDE." Jesse comes up to Luke, grabbing him by both of his shoulders, shaking him and saying, " LUKE, YOU CAN'T BE THAT DAMM STUPID TO START THAT FIRE AND NOT KNOW WHAT A FIRE CAN DESTROY. TELL ME THE TRUTH ON WHY YOU STARTED THE FIRE AND DON'T LIE TO ME." Luke, who was so shook up about what Jesse had said to him, " But Uncle Jesse I did not set the fire. I had gone into town to pick up the supplies when the fire occurred. How could I be there to start it." Jesse replied," DO I HAVE TO GET THE STRAP AND GIVE YOU A WHIPPING YOU WOULD NEVER FORGET. I HOPE YOU HAD BETTER NOT START TO LIE TO ME ABOUT NOT STARTING THE FIRE. " Then Luke answered his uncle, "But I told you already that I didn't start the fire." Finally Jesse got so angry with Luke that he slapped Luke on the left side of his face. Shocked by his uncle slapping him, Luke began to believe that Jesse thought he was stupid and he no longer loved him. Luke was upset because he never remembered his uncle call any of the kids stupid or slap them hard on the cheek. Jesse say, "Luke go to your room and don't come out till I am ready to let you out." During the next few days, Luke stopped talking to his uncle, but only talked to him when spoken. Luke did not tell Bo about the fight that he had with his uncle because he did not want to upset him.


	7. Possible Life Behind Bars

A week later, Bo's burns began to heal, so he was ready to come home, but he would need plastic surgery to remove the area of skin that was burned by the fire. Luke kept his promise to his uncle that he would visit and help take care of Bo once he came home. When Bo came home from the hospital, Luke helped his cousin while he healed. One day when Bo was getting ready for school, he was having a hard time gripping the buttons on his shirt. Every time he had the button almost in the hole, it would slip out of his hands because he could not grip them very well. After several times, he was about to give up when Luke came in to see what was taking his cousin so long to get ready because they were going to miss the bus. Luke said," Bo, do you need some help with your shirt." Bo replied," Yes, Luke can you help me, please." Luke went over to where Bo was sitting on his bed and finished buttoning his shirt and Luke told him, "Let's go Bo."

When they arrived at school, Luke told Bo that he had to go to class and he will be there to eat lunch with him. Bo said," Okay Luke I will see you later at lunchtime." After Luke left, some of the students knew the situation of Bo's accident, but had often tease him for several years, began to tease him again. Several students came up to Bo and said," Hey Bo, with your looks you can star in a freak show. Bo, you know that Halloween has been over for three months, you can take off your mask now." That is when one student started to grab at Bo's face where it had been burned, it caused Bo to scream while another student push him down onto the ground and it forced him to fall down with his hands hitting the ground hard. Then Bo managed to get up and ran to his first class. This continued through out the day till lunchtime. When Bo met his cousin at lunchtime, he noticed that Luke was very quiet and he noticed some bruising on his left cheek. He asked, "Luke, what happen to your face?" At the same time he was asking the question, he moved his hand up to his cousin's face and Luke suddenly slapped his hand very hard. Bo cried, " Ouch, Luke that hurt." Then Luke realized what he had done and said, " I'm so sorry Bo, please forgive me, I did not mean to have slapped your hand, it's just that you spooked me that's all" Then Bo says to Luke, "I know Luke, don't worry I still love you and forgive you." Luke said," I had a run in with a couple of guys and I don't want to talk about it Bo." Bo said, " Okay." Luke didn't want to tell Bo the truth that their uncle had slapped him. Luke asked," How was your day so far, Bo?" Bo didn't answer at first, but he finally said," The kids here are making fun of me because they say I am a freak and to take off my Halloween mask." Luke just put his arms around him to give him a brotherly hug and said," Don't worry about them and I am here to listen when you want to talk more." Bo just put his head on Luke's shoulder and began to cry. He whispered into his cousin's ear," Please don't tell Uncle Jesse about what happen." Luke answered Bo," I promise I ain't going to tell him anything."

The state police had drove up to the Duke farm to investigate the ruins of the barn. The police came up to knock on the door of the farmhouse and Jesse answered the door. He asked, "How can I help you sir." One of the policemen answered," We believe that this barn fire could had been done on purpose and since your nephew almost died, it is our responsibility to find out what happen. Can we take a look at the site and so we can find any evidence for this case." Jesse said, "Sure, I would really would like to find out what had happen to cause the barn to burn down."

The police went to do their investigation of the barn site and after a couple of hours, they came back to talk with Jesse. One of the policemen knocks on the door again. When Jesse answered the door, one of the men asked," We believe that we have found something that could have caused the fire in the barn. He brought the bag from behind his back and pulled out a burnt lighter. He asked, "Does this belong to anyone in your family." Jesse answered," Yes, it belongs to my other nephew, Luke. I recognized it because I can see some of the design where his initials are on the one side of the lighter". The policeman said," We need to talk to Luke about this matter and if he had caused the fire, then we have to arrest him and take him to the state prison in Atlanta." What everyone did not know that the real cause of the fire was the gas can that was hidden in a pile of burn wood which the police didn't go through to make sure that they investigated the whole site. One of the policemen asked Jesse," When do you expect him to be home." Jesse answered," At about three this afternoon after they come home from school." The policeman said," Okay, we will be back at four this afternoon since its only eleven in the morning and it will give you time to talk with your nephew. Please talk to your nephew about this situation. After the state police left the farm, Jesse began to wonder if this is the truth, then why did he lie to me and say he did not burn the barn that had nearly killed his cousin.

When the boys came home, Jesse asked Luke if he could talk to him. Luke said," Sure, Uncle Jesse, what is it?" Jesse answered," Luke, the state police were here this morning and are coming back in one hour. The had said they found some evidence that maybe the cause of the barn fire." Luke asked, " What did they find in the barn ruins." Jesse replied," They found your lighter." Luke paled when he heard Jesse say it was his lighter. Luke replied," I had some of my things in a box in the barn, but you know that I would never burn down the barn." Jesse answered," Well, Luke, Daisy had found your cigarettes in your room by accident. Why do I find it hard to believe that you didn't cause the fire." Luke became upset by his uncle's remark," You know I would never do anything to cause harm to Bo or anyone here. You know that I had gone into town to get the supplies and Cooter told me on the way back what had happened. Why don't you believe me, Uncle Jesse." Jesse said," Luke I like to believe you, but with what happen to your cousin, I am not sure what to believe." Then a car pulled up to the farm and Jesse and Luke saw it was the state police." One of the men got out of the car to ask if he was Luke. Luke answered," Yes," Then he said," I have talked to your uncle about the situation of the barn burning earlier today and I am sorry to say that you will be charged with the crime from the evidence we had found and you need to come with me to the state prison." He grabs his handcuffs and tells Luke to place his hands on his head. Luke does what he is told and the policeman grabs one of his hands behind his back to put on the handcuffs and does the same with the other hand. Once he has Luke's hands secured, he opens the back car door and tells Luke to get inside and drove away from the farm.

Bo came out of his room to see who had driven up to the house and he saw the state police handcuffing Luke and placing him in the car and heard the conversation between his uncle and Luke. Bo asked. " Why are they doing it, Uncle Jesse?" Jesse replied," Bo, I am sorry you had to see this, but the state police are here to arrest your cousin." Bo became upset when he asked his uncle." What for?" Jesse answered, " He is charged with burning down the barn because they found his lighter in the ruins of the barn. I am so sorry, Bo." When Bo heard that his cousin was going to jail, he ran back into the house to his room and lied down on his bed with his head faced down into the pillow. He began to cry because he realized that his cousin may have had started the fire that almost killed him. When his uncle knock on the boys' bedroom door, he didn't get a reply so he quietly opened the door and saw that Bo had cried him self to sleep. Jesse saw Bo lying on his bed facing the door, he could see the dried tears on Bo cheeks. Jesse began to wonder how the family is going to survive and how will Luke fight for his freedom for a crime he may not have committed. He slowly left the room and closed the door. When Daisy came home from work, Jesse told her what had happen and why Luke was in jail. She said, " We have to fight for his freedom because he didn't or could have ever burn down the barn especially when Bo was in the hayloft. " Jesse answered, " I know baby, I know and we need to stick together to bring Luke home. But I feel that Bo believes that Luke did it, since he heard me talk to Luke about you finding his cigarettes and we need to prove to Bo that his cousin would never harm him. Let's go to bed now Daisy." Then they both went to get ready for bed.


	8. A Time of Healing

Over the next few days, Bo continued to believe that Luke set the fire and became angry with his cousin for almost killing him. Bo began to believe the rumors about his cousin starting the fire when they found out that Luke was in the state prison. One student came up to Bo and said," Bo, ain't it true that your cousin set the fire because he wanted to get rid of you." Another student said to Bo," You know Luke deserves to be in jail." Luke called from the jail to talk with his family, especially to his cousin Bo. Everyone was happy to hear from him except for Bo. Daisy asked," How is it going, Luke. Luke answered," I am okay, Daisy." Daisy said," We are all trying to get your case to trial to prove that you are innocent." " We will help you all the way and Uncle Jesse wants to talk to you." Daisy handed Jesse the phone and he said, "Luke how are you doing?" Luke replied," I am doing okay, Uncle Jesse. How is everyone there at the farm?" Jesse answered," We are doing fine." Luke asked," Is Bo there, I would like to talk to him." Jesse started to feel unsure on how to tell Luke about his cousin's attitude towards him. Then he said," Luke, Bo is in his room and he had said as he left the family room that he does not want to talk to you. He believes that you had started the fire and I know in your heart that you would never do it. So don't be sad about it, give him some time to heal." Luke replied," I understand, Uncle Jesse. I have to go and I will call as soon as I can. Bye Uncle Jesse and give my love to Daisy and Bo." Luke found out that in three weeks would be his trial to prove he didn't burn down the barn.

It was a couple of weeks before Luke's birthday that the family decided they were going to the prison to visit Luke and celebrate his birthday. Bo had gotten Luke's present a couple of months earlier since he wanted to make a special present to give him and he had hidden the present so Luke wouldn't find it. It was a picture of Luke with his parents at a young age. Bo had the picture reproduced because he had accidentally ripped the picture several months earlier. Bo had said, " What you looking at Luke." Bo grabbed the picture and he accidentally ripped the picture in half. Luke yelled at Bo," Why did you ripped the picture that I was looking at. You grabbed it out of my hands, causing it to rip it and that was my only copy of the picture." Bo said, "I'm sorry." This gave Bo the idea for Luke's present so he went to the photo store and asked the owner if he could get another print. The owner of the store said," Yes and it would cost about ten dollars." So Bo paid for the photo to be reprinted and brought a frame to put it in. When Jesse wanted to visit Luke, he went to ask Bo if he wanted to go, but when Jesse went to the boys' room Bo had gone to his secret place to spend some time away from the family. This would make Jesse angry that Bo refused to go see his cousin and he would have to tell Luke that his cousin wasn't home when he asked him if he wanted to go. Luke looked upset every time Jesse came to visit and he expected Bo to be there with him. This caused Luke to believe that his cousin didn't care or loved him anymore. Luke began to believe that he had started the fire when he stomped out his cigarette and thought it was out. He also hoped to make his cousin believe that he would never hurt him on purpose.

When Luke's birthday came, Jesse wanted the family to go visit Luke and to celebrate his birthday with him. Daisy came out of her room with her present for Luke and asked, "Uncle Jesse, is Bo getting ready to go celebrate Luke's birthday." Jesse replied," I will go ask if he is ready to go." Jesse went to the boy's room and knock on the door. When Jesse did not get a reply, he opened the door and said, "Bo are you ready to go visit Luke." He saw that the room was empty and this made Jesse mad. He thought to himself." Why would Bo leave the house without telling me? I can't believe that he would leave and not care at all about his cousin. Does he not care enough to show up to the prison to celebrate his cousin's birthday." Jesse walked back out the family room saying," Daisy it looks like Bo ran off again and I don't know where he is and we only have a few hours to visit Luke, so it looks like its just the two of us." Then Cooter drove up to the farmhouse just as Jesse and Daisy were getting into the truck. Cooter said, " Ready to go visit Luke to celebrate his birthday. Where is Bo? Uncle Jesse." Jesse replied," I think he went to the same place that he has been going to and I am not sure where it is." Cooter asked," Do you want me to go find him and get him to reason about missing out on visiting his cousin." Jesse said," I would really like it if you could and help explain to Bo that it is not Luke's fault."

Cooter left and looked at several places that the boys went to hide out at and he went to the third still site and as he pulled up he thought he saw Bo in the window of the building. Cooter got out of the truck and ran to the door of the building. He opened the door and he saw Bo sitting on the bed with a magazine. Bo had been so busy reading the magazine that he did not notice Cooter coming into the building. Cooter walked up to the bed and put a hand on Bo's shoulder and asked him," Bo, why are you not going to see your cousin today." Bo didn't answer at first and Cooter sat down on the bed and asked again, "Bo, why don't you want to see Luke today. Bo replied, " I hate him because he started the fire and did this to me." He pointed to his hands and face. "He lied to me and maybe that is why he did not visit me in the hospital. I look so ugly and the kids make fun of me and say Luke belongs in jail."

Cooter replied," Bo, your cousin would never hurt you and he was not even near the barn at the time the fire occurred. How could you be so mean towards Luke? It's his birthday and you are telling me that you don't care one way or another about your cousin to celebrate it with him. When Bo heard Cooter speak about Luke's birthday, he begins to cry and said," I can't believe I had forgotten all about his birthday. I can't believe that I would forget his birthday because I didn't realize that today was the fourteenth of February. Cooter can we go by the farm and pick up the present I got for Luke." Cooter replied," Sure buddyro, we can do that and go visit that cousin of yours." He gives Bo a hug and let Bo cry on his shoulder for a few minutes. Then they both left the building and drove over to the farm to get the present.

When Jesse and Daisy arrived at the prison, it was visitor's day for all the inmates, They sat all the food, cake and presents on the table and waited for Luke to come out with all the other prisoners to visit with their families. When Luke came out to greet his family, he noticed that Bo wasn't there and Luke thought that Bo didn't care enough to be there for him to celebrate his birthday. Luke put that thought aside and went to hug Jesse and Daisy. Daisy and Jesse say," Happy birthday Luke." Luke gave both of them a hug and he asked," Where's Bo, Uncle Jesse?" Jesse replied, "He ran off again and I don't know where he went to, but Cooter says he would go look for him." This made Luke sad that his cousin didn't want to see him and he also thought that deep down that Bo hated him for purposely starting the fire. As Jesse began to get out the cups, plates, and silverware that he noticed Cooter coming up to the table. Cooter says, "Hi." Luke replied, " Hey Cooter, it's been a while since I seen you." Jesse then walks over to Cooter to ask if he found Bo and Cooter replied, " No, Jesse." and he wrinked his left eye telling Jesse that he did and Jesse figured that it was a surprise." Jesse says," Okay Cooter you tried." Then everyone sat at the table and Bo started walking out towards his family and he walks up behind Luke and puts his arms around Luke to give him a hug. Luke felt someone come up to him and put his arms around him and he notices a present in the person's bandaged hands and realizes it was Bo. Bo whispers into Luke's ear," Happy birthday, cousin."


End file.
